Having the "Will" to ride and enthusiasm for the machine I think has a lot to do with it. Most of the guys I ride with do not share the enthusiasm I do for these machines and average roughly 3,000 miles a year. I have been without the bike for a couple warranty issues for about 2 months and I still managed to put 9,000 miles on it over the summer.
Some of us love to ride, love to race, love bike nights +ladies on the back from said bike night
and love to learn more and understand the machine in order to tame the power.
Others, would rather make it look better, see how fast they can make it (but can't take anything other than a straight line), only care about dyno numbers or quarter mile times. They invest in all this money to fulfill their fascination with it being unique and criticize Duc riders for investing so much money, but yet they have invested just as much to make theirs as fast, light, nimble, appear unique, they still fall short of the light weight and suspension and technology invested even after matching the power.
But it is all obsolete anyways, if you don't learn to maximize the power from it than you may as well be on a moped! Too many people argue over power, performance and price, but they don't realize how important it is to just have a bike that suits or fits you. They choose the bike others believe they should get instead of test riding them and CHOOSING which one the lust for. Ducati is not the ultimate bike for everyone, but each rider should be riding the bike they want, not what the magazines, the media or the peers think they should get.
This is why I am proud to be a Ducatista! I am very passionate about the riding, adventure, and racing experience.